Police have identified the fifth fatality in the car accident along the Tagaytay-Calamba Road in Barangay San Jose. Tagaytay City in Cavite last Sunday, January 17, as 16-year-old Kirby Keziz Capalan Bokingo.

Local police have started its in-depth inquiry on the road tragedy in a conference Monday, January 18.

The red Toyota Vios car with plate number AHA 5287 along the Tagaytay-Calamba road on Sunday, January 17. (Photo courtesy of Jaey Marchaille Silva)

Superintendent Ferdinand Ricafrente Quirante, city police chief, further identified Capalan as a resident of Block 25, Sunnydale, Barangay Bucandala, Imus City, Cavite.

The charred remains of the victim was identified by his uncle at the morgue through his shorts and slippers on Monday afternoon, January 18.

The sixth fatality, the car driver, has remained unidentified at the morgue.

Quirante cited that the witnesses, closed-circuit television (CCTV) footages and information, are being gathered by his officers for the investigation.

Quirante also said that there were four males and two female fatalities in the accident and not three males and three females as reported earlier by his investigators.

He identified the four other fatalities earlier as Rodalyn Octavo Bautista, 17, a resident of Medicion II, Imus City, Cavite; Jamie Garcia Gubaton, 16, of Barangay Putol, Kawit, Cavite; John Paul Esperanza Tena and John Russel Garcia, 15, both of Barangay Buhay Na Tubig, also in Imus.

The half-burned body of Bautista, found beside the driver, and the charred remains of Gubaton, Tena, Garcia and the fifth victim were extricated by authorities off the burnt Toyota Vios car (AHA 5287) about two hours after the tragedy.

The car burst into flames after it hit a concrete barrier and a tree and has remained lodged at the concrete post. The victims were trapped inside the damaged car.

Quirante, citing accounts of witnesses, said that the accident happened as the wayward car was traveling at a fast speed. The car came from 7-11 Convenience Store near the Ninoy Aquino Statue at the junction in Barangay San Jose which is about one-and-a-half kilometers from the accident site.

“Nobody could tell yet why the car exploded then burst into flames, this is what we are going to find out,” Quirante said.

He said that the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SoCO) came and would render its report on the accident’s technical aspect.

“It may take days or a week at the least for the SOCO findings to come out. What we are trying to establish now is, what caused the accident, the explosion, and the burst of flames,” he said.

The Tagaytay-Bureau of Fire Office will also conduct a separate investigation.

Silang, Cavite — The Cavite Police Provincial Office Special Investigating Task Group (PPO-SITG) has taken over the probe into the killing of a retired American serviceman, who was shot inside the house of his friend in a plush subdivision in this upland municipality last January 14.

Robert Lee Davis, 65, was shot in the chest by one of five suspected “Akyat Bahay Gang” robbers with a .45-caliber pistol, shortly before 9 p.m. last Thursday inside a house in Metrogate Subdivision.

Police Officer 2 Nelvin Trajico, case investigator, said they have already reviewed the closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage of how Davis, along with his wife, was gunned down and the house ransacked of cash, jewelry pieces, and other valuables amounting to over P1 million.

Superintendent Robert R. Baesa, Silang police chief, said that the SITG, composed of officers from the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), intelligence, crime laboratory and other concerned police units, are already zeroing in on the identities of the five robbers who barged into the house wearing bonnets over their faces.

Tagaytay, Cavite – The six minors who were killed in a fiery car crash in this city last week were said to be in a jovial and excited mood before their vehicle crashed on the roadside and burst into flames, the city’s police chief disclosed yesterday.

Superintendent Ferdinand Ricafrente Quirante said that a barangay tanod (village watchman) heard animated conversations and laughter as the ill-fated vehicle sped past an outpost before 3 a.m. last Sunday.

“Narinig po ng ating tanod na may humihiyaw sa sasakyan nang mapadaan sa harap mismo ng barangay hall bago ang aksidente (Our tanod heard the occupants yelling happily when the car passed by the village hall before the accident.),” Quirante said.

He, however, did not say whether or not the victims were intoxicated.

One passenger yelled in excitement as the car accelerated, the police chief said. He added that the villegae watchman’s outpost was near the crash site.

Quirante withheld other information about the victims and details about the accident for the meantime.

“Our facts and data would have to be exact and sure and we will take the course with the help of the victims’ families, witnesses and other concerned individual, he said.

Quirante said that he would render an initial report on the accident by today.

The fatalities were earlier identified as Rodalyn Octavo Bautista, 17, Jaymee Garcia Gubaton, 16, John Paul Esperanza Tena and John Russel Garcia, both 15, Kirby Keziz Capalan Bokingo, 16, and the car driver Bren Lauren Calabines, 16.

Amadeo, Cavite — The skeletal remains believed to be of a couple who had gone missing for four months were unearthed at a pineapple plantation in Barangay Salaban, here, police reported yesterday.

However, police have been withholding the facts and circumstances of the incident as the case is being probed by the Cavite Police Provincial Office’s Special Investigating Task Group (PPO-SITG).

(Photo courtesy of google maps)

In an initial report released only yesterday, PO 3 Kithy Boy J. Costelo, case investigator, identified the couple as Eleuterio N. Bayot and Ma. Victoria B. Bayot, both of Barangay Dagatan, Amadeo.

The Bayots were reported missing since last September 1, said PO3 Costelo. No other information about the victims and the incident were given by police about their disappearance.

At least 16 pieces of human bones were exhumed at the Sablayan pineapple plantation lot. With the bones were a maroon shirt, tattered pants and a small round-shaped golden rosary, it was reported.

An informant led the officers from PPO-Intelligence Branch and Tagaytay and Amadeo police and a Criminal Investigation and Detection Team (CIDT) to the plantation site.

Scene of the Crime Operatives led by Senior Inspector Amer C. Magsumbol also did some investigating at the site.

A report said that a DNA test would be conducted to determine if the skeletal remains were indeed that of the Bayots.

Inspector Rommel Castillo Dimaala, Amadeo deputy police chief, said that the case was originally handled by the Tagaytay City Police and is now being investigated by the PPO-SITG.

Trece Martires, Cavite — Concerned citizens of this province have expressed alarm over the spike in vehicular accidents along major highways, where 126 were reported dead on Silang Roads and 10 in Tagaytay City since 2015.

Residents are calling on authorities to implement stringent measures that will safeguard the riding public, including pedestrians and even a road safety summit involving all concerned sectors to come up with no-nonsense accident preventive measures in the entire province.

Just last Friday, Benjamin Macabata Magracia, 51, of Bayanan, Muntinlupa City, Metro Manila, was killed in Dasmariñas City, while five others were injured when their car was struck by a pick-up truck along Aguinaldo Highway.

On the same day, factory worker Jervin Paguibitan de Tablan, of Patindig Araw, Milagrosa, Carmona, died when his motorcycle was hit by a car and a truck on Governor’s Drive in Carmona.

Last Sunday, a car with six minors went wayward and hit a center concrete barrier and a tree then burst into flames before dawn in Tagaytay City. All passengers were burned to death.

Officials said that the fiery road accident was just one of the road tragedies in the province from January, 2015 to date.

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Board) under Vice Governor Ramon Jolo Revilla III was called upon to inquire, in aid of legislation, the fatal vehicular accidents and find measures that may well prevent road disasters.

The local government under Governor Juanito Victor “Jonvic” Remulla Jr, was also asked to call a road safety summit involving all concerned sectors and come up with no non-sense accident preventive measures in the turf.

The Cavite Police Provincial Office (PPO), citing its compiled reports, said road accidents are common along the Aguinaldo Highway, a 40-kilometer road from lowland Bacoor District to upland Tagaytay City, Molino Boulevard and Tirona Highway in Bacoor; Daanghari Road in capital Imus; North Diversion or Bacao Road in General Trias City; Governors Drive in Carmona; Dasmariñas City, General Trias and Trece Martires, C.M. de los Reyes Avenue in Amadeo, among other main thoroughfares.

In Silang alone, Supt. Robert R. Baesa, acting municipal police chief, reported that there were 126 accidents, including fatal ones, in his jurisdiction in 2015 alone.

TRECE MARTIRES CITY, Cavite—The Cavite Commission on Elections (Comelec) has called for a simple holding of a peace covenant in the province for the May 2016 elections.

(MB File Photo/ Photo by Camille Ante)

The covenant, with the involvement of provincial, city and municipal candidates, is sought for a peaceful election period which covers 120 days to Election Day and 30 days after.

Provincial Comelec Supervisor Juanito V. Ravanzo Jr.  recommended a solemn, sacred and simple holding of the covenant in the province. For the lawyer officer, spending for a covenant or any related gathering is only a waste of money.

Ravanzo said that first and foremost in the covenant is the prayer and vow in keeping the ballot sanctity, peace, camaraderie, goodwill and best elections.

Ravanzo said that the covenants for the candidates are set to be held per city and municipality in the next few months. The covenants, as in the past, are set in parish churches or other places preferred by the organizers.

Meanwhile, Ravanzo said he expects the 2016 election period in the turf to be much better off with the candidates vying and the preparations being undertaken by the police and the Comelec.

”The (candidates’) list in the cities and municipalities speaks for itself. There are those (candidates) without opponents and some with independents as rivals. There are also the police and Comelec’s preparations and measures for the period” he said.

Ravanzo said that there are at least three cities and four municipalities being watched in the province in terms of political developments and past election skirmishes.

The Comelec and the police earlier placed under its watch the cities of Bacoor and Trece Martires and the municipality of Rosario “but they are not considered as hot spots yet,” Ravanzo said.

He also confirmed that Cavite remains as the top vote-rich province in Luzon with the 1.84 million official registered voters in the turf. The election officer said that the figure also made Cavite the country’s second most “vote populous” after Cebu province.

Cavite province has seven districts comprising seven cities and 16 municipalities. The province is the country’s most populous area as per reports from National Statistics Office (NSO).

Three persons, including a tot, died while four others were seriously injured when a car overturned and hit a van on Daanghari Road in Barangay Molino IV, Cavite on January 24, 2015.

The Bacoor police identified the fatalities as Choe Mcenzie Abcede, 3; nanny Brenda Diolon, 22; and Francisco Mabuhay Anino Jr., 48.

Injured were the child’s parents — Mark Rebanal Abcede, 35, and Rochelle, 33 — and spouses Nestor and Elizabeth Ortigosa.

The Abcedes and Diolon were reportedly on board a red Innova car (AAY 6290) driven by Mark while the Ortigosas in a Super Custom Hi-Ace van (RBX 929) driven by Anino at the time of the accident.

Senior Inspector Dexter Capua, Bacoor police station investigation chief, and PO1 Francis Yu, case investigator, said that the accident happened as the Abcede car was bound to Molino Boulevard; while the van, to Alabang, Metro Manila.

Initial investigation conducted showed that the car overturned after its left front tire suddenly burst. The car eventually hit the van that was travelling on the opposite lane.

Capua and Yu said that the accident is still under investigation.

Trece Martires City, Cavite — Provincial authorities have issued a reminder for local residents, saying that the dengue outbreak warning they issued in the province last year has not yet been lifted.

In fact, for the first 23 days of the year, Provincial Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (PESU) has already recorded 261 dengue cases.

This came after the PESU disclosed that 2015 ended with 12,007 reported cases of dengue in the province that resulted in 48 deaths – which goes down as the highest among provinces in the country.

The figures were contained in Morbidity Week 52 report or the year-end account of the PESU.

Cavite, the country’s most populous province, has seven districts comprising seven cities and 16 municipalities.

The 2015 record showed that Fourth District or Dasmariñas City had the most number of dengue deaths during the year.

Governor Juanito Victor “Jonvic” Remulla had officially declared the dengue outbreak and placed the entire province in a state of calamity last September 21. Cavite was the first to declare the outbreak among the provinces.

And even with the new year, the pronouncement stays since “the epidemic threshold (to warrant the lifting of the dengue alert) does not say so yet.”

The threshold is the statistical gauge which determines the epidemic’s level or status.

Although the number of dengue cases was observed to be on the “downward trend” by some medical personnel, the PESU was reluctant to comment whether or not the outbreak could now be lifted.

The League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP) asked the Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday to exempt mayors and other local officials running in the May 9, 2016 elections from the gun ban that has been enforced at the start of the election period on January 10.

The gun ban will last until June 8, 2016.

“Sana po mabigyan po ng privilege kagaya po ng mga governors and mayors tungkol po sa security at rules sa gun ban. The mayors are on the front, they are working in the grass-root level.  Protection is also needed,” LCP National President and Quezon City Mayor Herbert M. Bautista told reporters during a Comelec briefing at the Special LCP General Assembly at the Tagaytay Vista Lodge Hotel.

The actor-turned-politician said that the LCP was set to pass a resolution at the end of the special assembly yesterday.

Bautista made the move after getting the consensus of the officers and members during the assembly which tackled LCP agenda and concerns.

Comelec Chairman Andres D. Bautista, meanwhile, assured that the poll body would do everything to keep the electoral system “accessible, credible and inclusive” and called on the electorate “to do their part.”

Bautista said he has yet to see the request of the LCP with regards to the gun ban exemption and will tackle it with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and other concerned agencies as soon as he receives it.

Bautista’s call for a leeway on the gun ban and security details is supported by majority of the LCP members. The group said mayors and other local officials running in the elections need protection particularly those in the countryside.

Also present in the assembly was former LCP National President Francis N. Tolentino who is running for the senate.

434 CIVILIANS

Meanwhile, the number of persons arrested nationwide for violating the election gun ban has breached the 400 mark as of Friday, data released by the PNP showed.

The PNP said a total of 434 persons, mostly civilians, have been arrested as of yesterday.

 Based on PNP National Election Monitoring Action Center (NEMAC) records, among those arrested were two PNP personnel, six security guards, three government officials, a militiaman (CAFGU), and four from other law enforcement agencies.

Likewise, the PNP reported that 267 assorted firearms and 2,514 other deadly weapons have been seized in various checkpoints set-up nationwide.

Among the items seized aside from the firearms were 13 grenades, seven “other explosives”, 10 gun replicas, and 2,484 assorted ammunition.

Those arrested face charges for violation of the Omnibus Election Code that carries a penalty of up to six years imprisonment and perpetual disqualification from public service.

Malacañang earlier underscored the need to implement strictly the gun ban to ensure a peaceful and orderly election. It credited the successful conduct of the 2013 election to the strict implementation of the gun ban.

Records show that there are more than 1.5 million registered gun owners in the country. (W ith a report from Elena L. Aben)

Naic, Cavite — A couple was gunned down inside their car by two men who posed as car dealers and then took off with the victims’ cash amounting to P300,000 in Barangay Timalan Concepcion, this municipality last weekend, police reported yesterday.

Chief Inspector Gil Tisado Torralba, Naic police chief, said victims Alvin de Guia Luay, 34, a municipal hall employee and buy-and-sell businessman, and his alleged live-in partner Trixie Rodriguez Aragon, 24, both of Rosario town, this province, were found dead in the front seats of their Honda Jazz car (ZAK-977) last Saturday. Torralba said both victims died of bullet wounds in the head and body.

A local police team arrested on Sunday three suspects with the help of Luay’s cellular phone which was found by investigators in the car.

Torralba said suspects Rexon Sorosoro Montoya, 35; Arvin Norris Parani, 28; and Carlo Joshua Aoay Bunda, 21 were arrested one after the other in follow-up operations in Rosario and Noveleta municipalities.

Torralba said that during interrogation, Bunda, the youngest of the suspects, confessed that it was Montoya who made the bogus car transaction with the victims so that they would bring in the cash.

Bunda also confessed that it was Parani who allegedly shot the couple, the chief of police said.

He said that they have witnesses, including a widow and a tricycle driver, in the robbery-slay case, however, the suspects denied any part in the killing.

A double robbery with homicide charge was set to be filed before the prosecutor’s office yesterday.

Trece Martires City, Cavite—  Did you know that Cavite province with 1,843,168 registered voters is the top vote-rich  province in Luzon?

Provincial Comelec Supervisor Juanito V. Ravanzo  Jr. said the latest Comelec voter summary report shows that the top five  provinces with the most number of voters are Cebu with 2,722,288  followed by Cavite,  Pangasinan (1,705,260), Laguna (1,675,366)  and Negros Occidental (1,663,492).

The National Statistics Office (NSO) and the Provincial Population Office said that Cavite is the country’s most densely populated province with over four million residents spread in seven districts that comprise seven cities and 16 municipalities.

About 100,000 voters were delisted for having no biometrics.

In a briefing during the special general assembly of the League of Cities of the Philippines ( LCP) in Tagaytay city, Comelec chief Andres Bautista said of the 18 regions, Region IV-A or the Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon (Calabarzon) area has the largest number of voters with 7.6 million  followed by the National Capital Region or Metro Manila with 6.2 million and Central Luzon or Region III with six million.

The Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) has the least number of voters with 906,162.

Bautista said there are 54,363,844 registered voters for the 2016 elections. Of these number, 26,311,706 are males,  28,052,138 are females,  6,692,763 senior citizens and 318,013 persons with disabilities.(PWDs).

The overseas absentee voters number 1,376,067.

For the first time, the poll body is advocating mall voting to make voting comfortable and secure.  They are eyeing the transfer of polling places with high number of PWDs and seniors to malls adjacent to their polling precincts.

The Comelec chair assured that the malls where voting would be held  are owned by apolitical families.  Among those being eyed are SM, Ayala Malls, Robinson’s , Megaworld Lifestyle, Gaisano Grand, Pacific Mall Corp., Sta. Lucia and Walter Mart.

Tagaytay, Cavite — This prime tourist destination city is celebrating its traditional “Pista ng Pag-ibig” (Feast of Love) Month, showcasing simple but lively and memorable activities expected to attract 1 million local and foreign visitors.

Many of these visitors are likely couples promenading the ridge city to see the romantic panoramic view of the one-of-a-kind Taal volcano and lake, dine and enjoy the area’s serenity and fresh and invigorating cool climate this Hearts’ Month.

The city, teeming with parks and resorts,  restaurants, hotels and rest houses, is the favorite place  of young and elderly couples to relax, reflect, and say “I love you” to each other, especially on Valentine’s Day.

Observers tagged the city as “Love Capital of the Philippines” with its vast scenes and the recreational areas and the visiting couples, families, and children.

The City Information Office said that the  administration under Mayor Agnes Delgado-Tolentino set the Holy Mass for the Feast Day of Our Lady, Mother of Fair Love and the traditional mass wedding on Valentine’s Day (Sunday), this time at the Tagaytay International Convention Center where at least 40 couples would exchange “I dos.”

Tagaytay is the only city in Cavite province which has consistently rendered the mass wedding every Hearts’ Day through the years.

The administration also set today the talent competition for the best “Father and Son” in the city and “Gandang Lola” (Beautiful Grandmother), a contest for women residents 60 years old and above at the Tolentino Sports Complex in Barangay Sungay West.

Expected to grace the activities with the mayor are her husband, Cavite 7th District Rep. Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino, other city officials, and guests.

Among the favorite spots in the city are the Sky Ranch Amusement and Recreation Park in Barangay Kaybagal South, Tagaytay Highlands in Calabuso, Picnic Grove Complex in Sungay East, People’s Park in the Sky in Dapdap West and East, the highest point in Cavite where the image of Our Lady, Mother of Fair Love is; and the so-called One Destination area or the “Sky City Strip” of restaurants and bars along the more than six kilometer-stretch ridge on Aguinaldo Highway.

Imus, Cavite – The long-time head of the Cavite Provincial Commission on Elections (Comelec) Office has ceded his post as he reached the mandatory retirement age.

Juanito V. Ravanzo Jr., retired as election officer as he turned 65 on his birthday last January 28. There is no tenure extension for a retired officer even as the national and local elections are a few months away. The Comelec Main Office tapped Vidzfar Julie, an election officer in Mindanao, to take over Ravanzo’s post.

Ravanzo, a lawyer by profession, reigned as the officer who held the Cavite Comelec office the longest. He had been the office head for 20 years starting in 1995.His retirement came in the midst of the election period.

Meanwhile, Director General Ricardo C. Marquez, chief of Philippine National Police (PNP), assured peace and order for the election period in the province’s lowland and upland districts with the tight watch and security measures being enforced by his officers and men,

Marquez visited this camp last week and met with Senior Superintendent Eliseo D. L. C. Cruz, his staff and the chiefs of police (CoPs) of the province’s seven cities and 16 municipalities.

“We are on the go, peace and order are 100 percent (sure) in Cavite, particularly in the election duration,” Marquez said.

The meeting tackled various peace and order concerns, including the performance of police assigned to the seven districts of the province. Cavite is the country’s most populous province and Luzon’s top vote-rich area, as reported by the National Statistics Office and the Comelec.

Carmona, Cavite – This historical and fast-developing municipality is celebrating its week-long 159th founding anniversary along with the triennial Sorteo Festival, a one-of-a-kind harvest fair in the country and Asia.

The festival, which showcases Carmona’s best produce vegetables and rice got underway last Tuesday with thousands of residents and

Carmona, Cavite (Photo courtesy of Wikipedia)

tourists witnessing the morning parade of floats and street dances participated in by women and men in green and yellow crop and flower-themed attires while clutching palay threads which symbolize a good harvest.

Mayor Dahlia A. Loyola, her husband, 5th District Rep. Roy M. Loyola, and municipal officers organized the program for the anniversary events, with the theme “Gintong Butil, Ani ng Kinabukasan” (Golden Grain, Harvest of the Future).

‘Sorteo ng Bukid’

prize galore

The highlight of the once in every three years festival is the four-night “Sorteo ng Bukid ng Bayan,” (Town Field Lot Lottery) starting tomorrow, February 19 Friday, where raffle prizes include when prizes 110 land parcels, R100,000 cash (four winners) and R40,000 cash (150 winners).

“Sorteo” is a Spanish word which means lottery or raffle. The Carmona version, as in the past, have land parcels and separate cash as prizes that are picked in giant and small “tambiolos” (lottery round cases). (Anthony Giron)

Trece Martires, Cavite – The Cavite Provincial Health Office (PHO) set in motion a tougher, more comprehensive action plan against dengue as three new deaths were reported in the province this year.

The action plan, including an uncompromising anti-dengue campaign in barangay (village) level, was tackled during the PHO’s consultative meeting held over the weekend at Cavite Collaboration Center for Public Health auditorium in this city.

Cavite map (Photo courtesy of Google Maps)

The meeting, the first for the year, was led by Provincial Health Officer I Dr. Gilberto Ilog, Infective Disease Cluster Head Dr. Ma. Hilda Bucu and Health Education Promotion Officer II Annabelle R. Dilig and was participated in by the dengue coordinators from 17 city and municipality health offices.

The PHO is holding its consultative meeting quarterly for dengue monitoring and updates.

The Provincial Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (PESU) reported three dengue deaths from the 333 cases recorded in the province’s lowland and upland districts last month.

It was reported that the top five areas with the most number of dengue cases last January were General Trias, Imus,  Bacoor , Dasmariñas, and this city.

General Trias reported two dengue deaths and Dasmariñas one. The new cases for the year were recorded in the seven districts of the province.

In 2015, Dasmariñas had the most number of deaths with 22.

Although the PESU reported that the 333 cases were lower by 42 percent compared to the same period in 2015 with 577, health and provincial officers see no need to lift the dengue alert.

The PHO withheld latest dengue trending details pending the epidemic threshold observation. The threshold is a statistical gauge which determines the dengue level or any other epidemics in the area.

The provincial government and the PHO officially declared dengue outbreak and placed all seven districts under a state of calamity on Sept. 21, 2015 following the death and case number upsurge in seven cities and 16 municipalities.

Rosario, Cavite — This first-class municipality has its own cemetery for the so-called LGBTs (lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders) which is the first in the country and, perhaps, the only one in the world.

The municipal government also allowed the LGBTs to work in any local offices or field. Just last year, it allowed gays to work as traffic enforcers and firemen.

Mayor Jose “Nonong” Ricafrente Jr., a lawyer by profession, said there is no discrimination in the municipality and that they (the LGBTs ) have all the rights to live and work in the area.

The needy LGBTs are also included in the “womb-to-tomb program” of the municipal administration which renders, among others, free education and funeral services and burial.

In 2015, the local government, with the land given by a private firm, allotted a two-hectare space in Barangay Tejero to be used as cemetery for the LGBTs. The final resting place, dubbed “Ikatlo,” has 200 apartment-type niches with scores ready for use.

Municipal Media Coordinator Sid Luna Samaniego said at least one, a lesbian, was buried in the LGBT area in Salinas Garden of Memories. Rosario is also called Salinas by town folk. The land for cemetery use was donated by a “good samaritan”-private firm, said Ricafrente.

The LGBT niches have markers in varied colors for identification. Pink are for the gays while the green for lesbians. The niches were given by the private Heaven’s Garden Memorial Park.

At least 23 hectares of the donated cemetery land were divided for the municipality’s 20 barangays (villages) the Filipino-Muslim community and LGBTs. Samaniego said that the cemetery is exclusively for the dead of the needy families.

Trece Martires City, Cavite — With the onset of the Rabies Awareness Month, officials in Cavite vowed to conduct a year-round drive against animal bites and the dreaded rabies through information dissemination and firmer implementation of the anti-rabies law.

Just like dengue, animal bites, particularly by dogs, and rabies incidents are prevalent in populous Cavite considering the number of cases and deaths reported in the province through the years.

Cavite is deemed as the most dog-populated province being an area with the biggest population in the country.

The Provincial Population Office reported that in 2016, the province — with seven districts, comprising seven cities and 16 municipalities — has projected 4.015,552 residents. Although there is no record, a source surmised that the province has the most number of dogs in the country.

The Provincial Health Office reported that the year 2015 ended in Cavite with total cases

Camp Gen. Castañeda, Silang, Cavite — It’s all systems go for the 37th commencement exercises of the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) set at the grandstand, here, on March 10.

A total of 253 cadets – 234 males and 19 females – will graduate from the prestigious academy in ceremonies with President Aquino and other government officials.

Superintendent Robert R. Baesa, Silang police chief, has assured security and traffic management as thousands of people, coming from different areas, are expected to witness the event.

This year’s graduates will collectively be known as Masundayaw Class Batch of 2016. Masundayaw is an acronym for “Brave Warrior with Honor,” derived from the words MAsihud, brave; SUNdaro, warrior; and DAYAO (honor).

A total of 226 of this class would be joining the PNP; 10 will serve in the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP); and 16 will join the Bureau of Fire and Protection (BFP).

Top 10

The top 10 of the graduating class are Fire Cadet Felipe de Paz Alicando Jr., valedictorian; Police Cadet Norman Cabangen Pentang, salutatorian; Police Cadet Aldrin Sacayle Bagayao, Police Cadet Fredwin Lazaro Sernio, Fire Cadet Arianne Pespes Humiwat, Police Cadet Mark Samuel Labastilla Romanillos, Police Cadet Nicko Czar Gallener Magnaye, Police Cadet Ronie Ric Batulan Alipio, Jail Cadet Edo Bardaje Lobenia and Fire Cadet Arvin Jay Bongon Laguna.

For their feats, Alicando, of Dulag, Leyte province, will receive the Presidential Kampilan Award, Pentang, of Itogon, Benguet, the Vice President Kampilan Award and Bagayao, of Tabuk City, Kalinga, the Secretary of Interior and Local Government (SILG) Award.

Trece Martires City, Cavite — The population of Cavite province is now over four million and the number is expected to swell further with the ongoing developments in the area in terms of infrastructure, industrialization, and other projects.

A list obtained from the Provincial Population Office (PPO) shows that the population of the province is estimated to be 4,015,552 in 2016 and the number is destined to increase tremendously in the future with the progress in the area.

The list revealed that the 2016 number was two times bigger as compared with the New Millennium Year or 2000’s projected figure of 2,063,161. By 2020, the province’s population is estimated to be 4,822,582, it said.

It also shows that the province’s top six populated areas are Dasmariñas with 739,459; Bacoor, 715,678; General Trias, 396,810; Imus, 391,274; Tanza, 260,244; and Silang, 257,573.

The PPO pegged the population growth rate at 4.12%. The list contained the population figures of the province from 2000 to 2020.

The National Statistics Office (NSO) reported that Cavite, a first class province, is the country’s most populated area in the last three years, surpassing the provinces of Pangasinan and Cebu, which used to hold the record.

Imus, Cavite – President Aquino declared March 22, Tuesday, a special non-working day in Cavite province in observance of the 147th birth anniversary of General Emilio Famy Aguinaldo, a revolutionary leader and the country’s first president.

The President’s declaration was contained in Proclamation No. 1231 signed by Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa last Feb. 29.

(Photo courtesy of Google Maps)

Aguinaldo or Cavite Day is traditionally celebrated with simple activities at the Aguinaldo Shrine or family mansion on Tirona Highway (then called Calle Real) in Barangay Kaingin, Kawit.

Shrine personnel said a Holy Mass at the vicinity and wreath-laying at the nearby General’s tomb by Kawit Mayor Reynaldo “Tik”Aguinaldo, other family members and guests will be held in the morning of March 22.

The Aguinaldo ancestral house, which was converted into the state-of-the-art museum, is also open to the public during the day.

Aguinaldo, called “Heneral Miong,” became president in 1898 at the age of 29. He was also known as “Caesar of the Philippines,” “The Arm of Divine Providence,” and “Liberator of the Filipino People” with his actions during the revolution. He was born on March 22, 1869 at the Aguinaldo ancestral home in Cavite El Viejo now called Kawit.

Also commemorated on March 22 is the historic Tejeros Convention at Casa Hacienda, once a friar estate-house in Tejeros, San Francisco de Malabon (now General Trias City). The ‘Casa’ (House) is now part of Rosario (also called Salinas) municipality.